Bullet placement—that is, accurate shooting—is much, much more important than how fast the bullet goes, or how much the bullet weighs.
If you do not always shoot accurately, your shots will be ineffective. If you switch to "+P" loads, your shots still will be ineffective.
A hit with a .22 rimfire is a better defense than a miss with a .44 Magnum. A center hit with a standard .45 is better than an off-center hit with a +P .45's bullet.

The standard .45 load of a 230-grain bullet going 850 feet-per-second will always do the job, if you do your part.

The +P loads I have seen for the .45ACP 230gr in common use bullet configurations run between 950 and 990 fps. If your gun can handle the added pressure, then it's your choice. The only real advantage to going that route for civilian use would be if you were up against a very large BG and/or one with heavy clothing on. But keep in mind that with the same bullet, +P ammo many times in tests penetrates less than standard pressure ammo. This is due to the bullet expanding more rapidly when it initially hits the target and therefore, presenting a larger front which in turn meets greater resistance.

Never an easy answer but if you go with something like the Federal HST 230gr +P, you will only gain around 60 fps over, say, the 230gr Speer Gold Dot, both of which are fine bullet designs. It really comes down to a personal choice. I have some +P .45's which I reserve for shorter barrel lengths. For a bit more barrel, the standard pressure stuff would probably be my choice. The .45ACP is still one of the best SD calibers you can carry.

In short barreled guns it can keep the velocity up in the bullet's operating area.Most hollow points are good but some don't perform that well with the velocity drop from 3" barrels.It isn't like it was 20 or so years ago but there's still one or 2 around that still do it.I haven't followed ballistics for a while so I can't tell you which ones they are now.

The +P loads I have seen for the .45ACP 230gr in common use bullet configurations run between 950 and 990 fps. If your gun can handle the added pressure, then it's your choice. The only real advantage to going that route for civilian use would be if you were up against a very large BG and/or one with heavy clothing on. But keep in mind that with the same bullet, +P ammo many times in tests penetrates less than standard pressure ammo. This is due to the bullet expanding more rapidly when it initially hits the target and therefore, presenting a larger front which in turn meets greater resistance.

Never an easy answer but if you go with something like the Federal HST 230gr +P, you will only gain around 60 fps over, say, the 230gr Speer Gold Dot, both of which are fine bullet designs. It really comes down to a personal choice. I have some +P .45's which I reserve for shorter barrel lengths. For a bit more barrel, the standard pressure stuff would probably be my choice. The .45ACP is still one of the best SD calibers you can carry.

This is why I went with +P 200gr. I use Nosler Ballistic Tips for my hunting rounds. Some folks do not like them because often they will not make an exit wound. But with a properly place shot the bullet expends all of its energy in the chest cavity and turns everything in there to a red jellied mass. They don't go far enough after being hit to need an exit wound to track. If the +P 200gr. I have do the same then I have my objective and less worry about penetrating walls etc. I prefer a big hole in the bad guy. Not the next door neighbor. For penetration I have a .357 loaded with Buffalo Bore. That's my theory and I am sticking to it. (until proven wrong). Thick heavy coats in my area are the exception, not the norm.

This is why I went with +P 200gr. I use Nosler Ballistic Tips for my hunting rounds. Some folks do not like them because often they will not make an exit wound. But with a properly place shot the bullet expends all of its energy in the chest cavity and turns everything in there to a red jellied mass. They don't go far enough after being hit to need an exit wound to track. If the +P 200gr. I have do the same then I have my objective and less worry about penetrating walls etc. I prefer a big hole in the bad guy. Not the next door neighbor. For penetration I have a .357 loaded with Buffalo Bore. That's my theory and I am sticking to it. (until proven wrong). Thick heavy coats in my area are the exception, not the norm.

I once killed a deer with a .357 Ruger Blackhawk 6 1/2" barrel using one of my handloads: a Norma 160gr 3/4 JHP over 16 grains of 2400. In most anyone's book, that would be a high end +P load. Never found the bullet but it hit a rib going in and made a real mess of the top of the heart and major blood vessels there.

I don't prefer +P in .45 ACP self defense rounds, because they aren't necessary, in my opinion. The round still has to be fired accurately to stop a determined attacker, and if that is accomplished, a few more fps will be mostly irrelevant.

Heck, in a .45, I would not hesitate using standard pressure 230gn ball ammo. It's been a wonderful manstopper for the last 100 years. It is a slow big moving projectile that expends it's energy in the target, unlike fast 9mm ball, unless it hits something in the target. I was reading an article about an ole leo that exclusively used 230 gr ball ammo as his duty round and with many shootings he always managed to stop the adversary. The officer swore by 230gn ball ammo and had numerous confrontations to prove it, however, most indeed he was probably a very good shot.. Alvin York, GI's during WWII, GI's Fighting Moro's in the Phillipines and gangsters in the 20 and 30's have never complained about the effectiveness of .45 230gr ball ammo. At least I've never read of any complaints.

Thanks guys. I have all sorts of ammo and buy new stuff all the time but I always trusted the 230 gr Hyrdoshock ammo and HST too. When I am in the woods I have ball then golddots in 230gr. I am a good shot and with the right gun in my hand I can keep them grouped rather well. I once shot the head off a Timber Rattle Snake with my 3913 9mm with Critical Defense ammo under stress from the draw. I always believed that shot placement was the most important factor as a center mass hit with a 9mm 124 grain ball beats a poorly placed round of a .45acp +p 230gr JHP. That myth of hitting a man in the finger or arm and knocking him down is just that a myth. People see it in the movies and when shot sometimes act that role out, but reality dictates you must drop the blood pressure or shut down the central nervous system down to stop a gun fight.